Unexpected Kiss
by Andie33
Summary: Daniel leaves Betty speechless after their first kiss. Well it's about time! I decided to add a couple of chapters to this.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: This takes place towards the end of season 4, sometime after Daniel and Amanda had called off their 'thing'. Italics are Daniel's memories of the night before. Enjoy!

Betty walked into the office she shared with Mark looking more than slightly perplexed. Her morning had not gone at all how she would have expected. As she sat at her desk, she began dissecting the morning trying to decide exactly when it had taken a turn for the unexpected. Mark strolled into the office looking all too pleased with himself with Amanda draped on his arm.

"What's up Betty?" Amanda questioned, currently with more interest in potential gossip than true concern for her friend's distracted appearance.

Betty looked up as if just realizing she was no longer alone in the office and blinked a couple of times at them trying to focus on the present. "I don't want to talk about it, let's just get to work." Betty replies slightly flustered and avoiding eye contact with anything but her computer.

"Oh come on Betty, you'll feel lighter, I mean better if you get it off your chest."

"Mark didn't you just say something yesterday about trying to remain professional..."

"Well, if you don't spill soon, Chimichanga, we may have a new office mate." he theatrically whispers behind his hand as he points at Amanda, and completely dismisses ever making a statement about professionalism.

"Yeah, I'll move in your office like I did your apartment. And I'll never leave." Amanda threatens.

"Fine" Betty concedes knowing this will continue and none of them will get any work done, "Well, this morning was... weird." It was the only word she could think of to describe it or the feelings it caused. She paused going over everything in her head again until Mark started snapping his fingers in her face, "I don't have all day here, Betty." He sounded slightly agitated, but his face betrayed his interest.

Betty looked up and continued her story. "Daniel spent the night on my couch again."

"Oh right, your couch." Mark said with a wink at Betty and a 'yeah right' look tossed in Amanda's direction. Mark had managed to find any opportunity to express his doubt since he ran into Daniel leaving Betty's apartment early one morning before work. Ever the gossip queen, Mark knew that Amanda had moved on from their no strings attached fling and Daniel hadn't been seen with anyone but Betty in months.

"Anyway," Betty continued, "He said he didn't want to go to sleep last night so we stayed up and played cards."

"Is that what the cool kids are calling it these days?" Mark joked to Amanda.

"That or sex." said Amanda clearly agreeing with Mark about the "couch".

"Okay if you two are finished... " Betty said in frustration, "after we finished playing cards he turned on a movie."

"Blah, blah, blah. Does this story ever get interesting?" Mark asked

Tired of being interrupted, Betty rushes through the next part of the story, "And then I feel asleep on the couch with Daniel."

"Now that's interesting." Mark said leaning forward in his chair with an intrigued look.

Betty sighed as she continued, "And then I did something I have never done before in my life..."

"You plucked your eyebrows!" Amanda guessed, playfully oblivious of the direction Betty's story was taking.

"No Mandi, we would've noticed that, you decided to give solid colors a try? Unsuccessful, huh." Mark jested lightly, with a flourish of his hands at Betty's brightly patterned outfit. Amanda moved closer to examine Betty's appearance carefully, as Betty tried to back away.

"No, if you would let me finish..." a knock at the door interrupts Betty's story this time. All three companions turn as the door slowly opens to reveal a slightly flustered Daniel. "Hey Betty can we talk", as he glances around the crowded room he adds, "in my office, please?"

Mark notes Daniel seems genuinely worried that Betty will not follow him until he see her slight head movement forward meant to signal her compliance to his request. He had never witnessed these two so standoffish. Mark is instantly intrigued, wondering what could have possibly happened between the pair. He suddenly wished they hadn't interrupted Betty's story so many times, as she stands with an uncomfortable sigh and sends a look in his direction that he knows means she is dreading whatever is coming and heads towards the door to follow Daniel. "So that's what you've never done in your life before." he comments with a Cheshire cat grin. Betty sends him a glare that tells him he hasn't completely missed the mark as she closes the door with a loud thunk.

"Geez, you'd think she was getting fired instead of getting laid." says Amanda as she leans out the door to watch her walk to her 'impending doom' or so it would seem. She looks back at Mark to judge his reaction, he simply shrugs and then heads down the hallway to spy at Amanda's desk. He and Amanda pretend to be having a private conversation in direct eye line of the action as it unfolds.

In Daniel's office, things are awkward at best. "Betty, I think we should discuss what happened this morning." Daniel starts. Betty's cheeks turn a light pink. If that wasn't enough to tell him she is embarrassed, he would have known from her silence. He sits in the chair next to the one she dramatically plopped down in when she walked into his office. He tries to repress a sigh as he turns to face her and look her in the eye for the first time since what he has come to call the 'perfect morning' in his head. Daniel thinks he wouldn't mind a repeat, but from her reaction, he's not holding his breath. 'Could it have been only four hours since their first kiss.' Daniel thinks as he remembers the events of last night.

_He was having a rough night and he wound up at Betty's apartment, again, somewhere around midnight. It wasn't the first time this had happened in the past couple of months. It wasn't even the first time this week and she generously offered him her couch, a pillow and blanket. He hastily accepted the proffered items, but he wasn't anywhere ready to sleep. So, he talked her into a late night game of cards. After much discussion of their card playing abilities, or lack thereof, they settled on War. As Daniel shuffled and dealt the cards, he searched for a topic of conversation. He started talking about work because it was the first topic that came to mind, although the conversation took on a direction of it's own as they covered everything from families to dreams to their thoughts on colored legging . Betty was for, Daniel was against. The game finally came to an end three hours later when Betty laughingly threw her 44 cards in Daniel's face while exclaiming, "War is the worst game ever, it never ends!" _

_Daniel begrudgingly agreed to the ceasefire as he laid down 8 cards. Ever the optimist, he silently thought he could have won with a little more time. He reaches for the remote on the coffee table and turns it to the first movie he can find, as Betty leans back against the couch. Her eyes are drooping heavily, but she is determined to be a good friend, even at 3:00 in the morning. She smiles a little as she recognizes the opening strains of The Pirates of the Caribbean. "I love this movie", she sighs. "me too." he says as he looks over to see her quickly falling asleep. _

_He felt Betty lean against his shoulder and slide her feet under the blanket she had laid out on the couch for him. He carefully wrapped his arm around her making sure any space that was left between the two of them ceased to exist. She shifted slightly but did not open her eyes and he turned his attention back to the movie. _

_The next thing he knows, he is waking up with a soft weight on his left arm. He slowly opens his eyes and takes in his surroundings, Betty's couch again. But the weight on his arm is something new. He glances to his left and sees a pile of unruly brown hair and smiles to himself, 'so this is what it's like to sleep with Betty.' he thinks. He would be lying to himself if he denied that he had thought about it more than once in recent months. He quietly sighs as he enjoys the warm heat against his left side. He looks at his watch and closes his eyes trying to doze off for another fifteen minutes. _

_A knock at Betty's door and a loud shout about getting something out of the fridge ended their peaceful dozing. Betty popped up and used a hand against Daniel's chest to keep her upright. At the realization that it was just Amanda and she could wait until her alarm clock went off, Betty laid her head back against Daniel's chest. He felt her body tense and knew realization had set in as to her current situation. She tentatively looked up into Daniel's eyes and sat up quickly, again. Daniel wasn't ready to give up the contentment he woke up to this morning, and made no sudden movements to extract himself from the situation. "Sleep well?" he questioned with a smile tilting one side of his mouth. Betty sat beside Daniel slightly confused trying to piece together the events of last night. He could practically see the wheels turning in her head. She finally responds, "I have to get ready for work." sounding a little unsure._

_Daniel, realizing she wasn't ready to deal with this, finally sat up and put his shoes on and grabbed his cell phone off the coffee table. He walked out the door and turned to face Betty as she leaned tiredly against the door frame. "Thanks, you know, for last night." he said shyly. Daniel leaned to give her a hug and a kiss on the cheek, but Betty turned into it and he briefly kissed her lips instead. They both were startled by the unexpected kiss. Daniel, never one to pass on a perfect opportunity, leaned in and cupped Betty's face with his left hand, holding her in place for the second kiss. At first, Betty stood there in shock that seemed to prevent her from doing anything else. But as Daniel slowly moved his lips against her's trying to deepen the kiss, she finally responded in kind. He slid his other arm around her waist pulling her up to him and enjoying the feel of her against him for the second time this morning. _

_He felt her tense again and knew she was about to freak out about this. He tried to prepare himself for the speech that he knew was inevitable. But what he gets surprised him more than he can explain. Betty pulled away from him and stood staring at him in silence for a full minute before she regained her ability to form sentences. She quickly mumbled something about getting ready for work and shuts the door in his face. 'Well that was, odd, unexpected... nice' he thinks and smiles as he walks out of her building. Work should be interesting today._

Daniel looks up and realizes Betty is waiting for him to speak. He knows he may live to regret this, but he can't help himself. He has been going to her apartment for months now and he has known for a while that there was more than mere friendship there. She is the only one he trusts. She is the only one who knows him so well, respects his opinions, protects him from himself. He loves here, he knows that now. He leans across the space between the two chairs and whispers, "Hey can you do me a favor, and just... not freak out?" He gives her a few seconds to process his statement before he precedes to invade her space and kiss her senseless.

Mark and Amanda stand outside the window in Daniel's office where they witness the unexpected kiss. They both pull out their cell phones and video for as long as they can. They click a couple a photos, just in case. Once their phones come down they both glance at each other to gauge the other's reaction and simultaneously sigh happily.

Betty walks out of Daniel's office several minutes later with a smile on her face and a bounce in her step until she notices both Mark and Amanda sitting at Amanda's desk, looking at something on their phones. "What are you guys doing out here?"

"Looking at a startling photograph, wanna see?" Mark questions, grinning like a fool. He holds up his phone to show Betty the photo of her and Daniel kissing. She smiles and continues walking to her office. "I've seen it first hand." she says over her shoulder, a content smile smoothing out the worried features on her face.

Mark smiles at Amanda, "Well, it's about time." he yells down the hallway after her.


	2. Chapter 2

Author's note: Okay, I decided to add a couple of chapters to this, thanks to marielgm22. Let me know if you want me to continue. Enjoy!

Chapter Two: Unexpected Phone Calls

Daniel and Betty had been dating for a couple of weeks now and she was doing her best to keep her professional and personal lives separate, but Daniel was not cooperating at all. Distracting was not a strong enough word to describe him. 'Who was she kidding, she was never very good at keeping the two parts of her life separate either, but come on.' she thought. As her phone played Daniel's ring tone for the third time this morning.

He called her at eight to tell her good morning and he was sorry he couldn't stay longer, but he had an early meeting.

He called her at ten to see if she was taking her break soon. If she was, he thought she ought to know his meeting ended early and his office was currently empty.

He texted her shortly after ten thirty to let her know he thoroughly enjoyed their break.

His current call came in at eleven thirty to ask her about her interview. "Hey Betty, did you see the email about the change of venues."

"Yes, I did. I'm headed to the Closet to go over some changes for the shoot." she replied annoyed that this interviewee had no consideration for anyone else.

"Okay, did you see the staff meeting was moved to four."

"Yes, thanks. I've already got my ideas ready." she responds, knowing he's leading up to something, but not quite sure what.

"So... that means your free for lunch?" he questions.

Ah, she thinks, as she realizes what he wants, "Well, my boss really wanted me to read over this article today before the staff meeting..."

"I'll have you back in plenty of time for that." she can here the smirk in his voice.

"Well I guess I can't say no then." she teases him.

"Hey babe," Daniel said as he lowered his voice an octave, "What are you wearing?" he pauses as he hears her breath hitch. "I only ask for your convenience. I'm hoping it's something with a zipper, cause those buttons yesterday were a time killer."

She smiles and blushes as she quickly said, "Goodbye Daniel." and hung up before he could respond.

"Goodbye Betty," Daniel says to the dial tone as he looks down at his phone and smiles.

A few minutes later she received a text, "You know, it's probably not the best idea for you to hang up on your boss like that. "

She replied, "Please, if that was my boss talking, then I could sue for sexual harassment."

He laughs at her response and leans back in his chair as he gazes out the window. Someone behind him clears her throat and he quickly turns around in his chair. "Mom!" he says surprised to find anyone else in his office.

She knowingly smirks at her son, "Well it's about time." she says as she pats him on the shoulder and walks out of his office.


	3. Chapter 3

Daniel and Betty decide to take a town car from the Meade Building to Queens to make sure they aren't late for dinner. The weather is horrible and they would definitely be late if they were to rely on the public transit system tonight. There is nothing particularly special about this dinner, expect that they decided if Claire knew, her family needed to know as well, soon. Too many people with big mouths already knew what was going on and she wanted to be the one to tell her family. It's not like the were trying to keep it a secret or anything. It's just that this is not the kind of information she gives Hilda over the phone if she wants to maintain her hearing. The town car also gives them time to 'catch up' after a long day at work. They have been so busy. She thinks she may have seen him once from a distance getting on the elevator, as she was headed to the closet. Betty asks him if he is going to be at her shoot tomorrow.

"Yes, I think Mom is planning on dropping by as well." Daniel smiled, "She is really excited about this." he said as he waved his hand between Betty and himself.

"I could tell, she showed up in my office this morning and tried to run Marc off so we could talk woman to woman." Betty said with one eyebrow raised. "Unfortunately she didn't realize how persnickety Marc gets when he thinks he's missing out on some juicy gossip. He had the nerve to tell her 'this was a professional office and such conversations should only take place within his hearing.' I've never seen your mom so frustrated. She threatened to call security and he finally left but he said, 'I am GREAT at girl talk.' I'm pretty sure he listened outside the door for awhile before he got bored." Betty sighs tiredly.

Daniel laughs and pulls her closer to him, "Anything I can do to make it better." he asks.

She looks up at him under her eyelashes and says "Kiss me."

He smirks as he briefly considers her request. "I think I can handle that."

She smirks back and replies, " I know for a fact, you can handle that."

He leans in to kiss her forehead. His lips linger there for a moment, before he moves on to meet her lips. The kiss is leisurely, both of them content in enjoying the slow pace in the privacy of the town car for a few more minutes as they pull up in front of her father's house. Before they can get too distracted, Betty jumps out of the car and quickly makes her way to the front door doing her best to run in between the raindrops. Daniel follows behind her too preoccupied to worry about the rain.

It's not the first time Daniel's attended dinner at the Suarez house in the last couple of months. In fact he even helped Ignacio in the kitchen one night. However the events of that night did lead to him getting banned from the kitchen while the oven was on. Otherwise, he has become a welcome addition to the dinner table. Although tonight, it seems he is an unexpected guest. Betty lets them in the front door and they stand in the front hall shedding their outerwear, when they hear a yelp from the salon.

"Daniel, it's so nice to see you again." Hilda says as she comes out of her salon. She walks over and gives him a hug. Over his shoulder she smirks at her baby sister and draws out her name letting it imply much more than a simple greeting, "Betty."

Ignacio pops his head out of the kitchen at Hilda's exclamation. "Hello Betty. Daniel, I didn't know you were coming tonight." he says smiling congenially. He turns to Justin and tells him to set another place at the table and then guard the entrance to the kitchen.

Justin sets out a plate for Daniel as Bobby rushes into the house and out of the torrential downpour that picked up just as he was arriving. Ignacio calls everyone to the table a couple of minutes later as he sets out the rest of the food. Everybody takes their seats and serves themselves. They begin eating as the lights begin to flicker, once, twice, and then they seemingly go out for good. Everyone immediately jumps up and starts scrambling around for candles. "Girls, where did I put those candles after the last power outage?" Ignacio questions his daughters.

"I think they're in the Buffet." "You put them in the cabinet next to the fridge." both girls answered simultaneously.

Everyone heads off in different directions in search of them, feeling their way around the room. They can't see their hand in front of their face, but they hear each other as they shuffle around the rooms of the house. There is a loud thump as Betty lets out a little yelp from somewhere on the floor. "What was that" Ignacio questions from somewhere near the kitchen.

"I'm sorry Betty." Daniel groans as he gropes around trying to get up and then help Betty up as well.

"We're both fine." Betty reassures everyone when they are both finally upright again.

Daniel leans over and whispers in her ear, "Should I kiss it and make it better?"

Betty quietly sighs out "Yes".

He wraps an arm around Betty's waist and uses his other hand to cup her chin. He gently runs his thumb over her bottom lip and slowly leans in. As their lips meet, the lights flicker back on, illuminating more than the room. Everyone else stops their search for the candles and turns toward the table. Betty and Daniel pop apart to three open mouthed stares and an enthusiastic, "Alright!" from Bobby.

Ignacio looks up at the ceiling as if praying and sighs happily, "Well it's about time."

Hilda and Justin begin asking Betty questions at a mile per minute. Bobby just smiles and pats Daniel on the back.


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note: Thanks for all the great reviews and readers. This takes place a few months after the last chapter. Enjoy!

Daniel woke up sometime after midnight in his king size bed, the only thing he really missed when he stayed at Betty's apartment. He reached for Betty, but grasped only air. He opened his eyes and quickly determined he was alone in his room. He noticed her skirt on top of the dresser and her bra hanging from the bathroom door knob and knew she couldn't have gotten far.

He rolled onto his back and stared up at the ceiling as he reflected on the events of this evening. 'Tonight had been amazing,' he thought. He never dared to hope Betty would be into costumes. He knew she would look sexy in her princess costume for the party, he expected it. But what he hadn't expected was the 'after party'. He wandered if he had ever been that turned on in his life. He was briefly disheartened when he realized that he hadn't gotten any pictures, because he's pretty sure he would never see that costume again. Then he smiled at the knowledge that the image was burned in his brain for eternity. He suddenly wondered why he was still in bed when there was a mostly naked Betty somewhere in his apartment and he was instantly determined to find her. He sat up and grabbed his boxer briefs from where she threw them on the floor earlier tonight, next to a slightly bent up tiara. Really, it didn't stand a chance when he saw her change of costumes.

He walked towards the front of the apartment, inspecting all the rooms as he went. He noticed a faint light and followed it to the kitchen. He found her leaning into the fridge, hair disheveled and wearing just his t-shirt. He stood there for a minute admiring the beautiful picture she made. As he got closer he realized she was lost in thoughts that likely had nothing to do with the contents of his fridge, which amounted to some very old takeout, milk, a case of beer, an open bottle of wine and a jar of pickles.

He walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. As he glanced at the contents and kissed her shoulder, he told her, "Not even a culinary genius could get something edible out of that." She smiled and turned into his arms. This wasn't the first time they've slept here, but they usually stayed at Betty's place. He already had a couple of dresser drawers, the right side of the bed and a toothbrush by the sink. Besides, then she didn't have to run home the next morning to get ready. They only stayed at his place tonight because it was closer to where the party had been held and they didn't have to wait for the town car to pick them up.

"Hey, I didn't wake you did I?" she questioned as she looked up at him with a worried expression on her beautiful face.

"Nope, but I was starting to feel a draft in the bedroom." he smiled and nodded at the open refrigerator.

She promptly closed the door and smiled as she leaned up to kiss him. "I worked up an appetite earlier," she said with a sexy smirk, "and I was going to raid your fridge, but I'm a little afraid of the contents."

"Mhmm," he said dubiously. "I believe it was just last Wednesday at your place that we had to make a run to the grocery store after midnight to get something edible. So do you want to be the pot or the kettle?" he playfully questioned knowing Betty was rarely unprepared., and that it had been a busy week for her. Ignacio had sent her home with leftovers the next night, which they both thoroughly enjoyed during a midnight refrigerator raid.

"Well there was at least whip cream here, but you said you liked costumes." she teased looking up at him from under her eyelashes as a light blush stained her cheeks. He wandered if she knew just how sinful she looked right now.

"So what you're telling me is we need more whip cream." he smirked. He ran to his room to grab his remaining clothes before she could object. He pecked her cheek and promised to be back as quick as possible as he made a dash for the door.

She laughed and yelled after him, "You better get something to sustain my energy or the whip cream just might melt right off."

He thought this might be the best Halloween ever. He also thought it might be time to share one apartment. "Well it's about time." he said to himself as he sighed contentedly. Her place had felt like home for awhile anyway, he acknowledged to himself. He decided he'd bring it up tomorrow morning. She would be too distracted for the rest of tonight.


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note: Sorry for the delay, this chapter has been difficult to write. I may have rushed it a bit, so I hope there are no mistakes. I hope you all enjoy it! Thanks for all the reviews.

Daniel tested his idea out at breakfast the following morning. She seemed surprised, and then intrigued by the idea of sharing a place. Daniel excitedly started making plans to move into her apartment, until he realized Betty was looking at him like he had grown a second head. After much debate, Betty finally talked Daniel into moving to a place that neither of them had lived in before. Her place, despite his protests, was just too small for both of them and his king size bed and Daniel's place had too much history.

They moved into their townhouse three weeks later. He had wanted something bigger, but she fell in love with this one in particular. "Besides, this place has a lot of character." she said optimistically trying to convince him as she admired the high ceilings and the original red brick wall that spanned the entire east side of the house. He thinks by character, she really means brightly colored walls. Turns out the previous tenants like color more than Betty. Even she admitted it was a little loud and they could tone it down a bit.

It was slightly terrifying, putting Betty in front of a wall of paint chips, but it worked out better than he expected. She let him choose a neutral for the front room and she chose a calming blue for the bedroom. They decided the reds in the kitchen and dining room could stay. The office would be a warm gray and the guest room would be a spring green. The master bathroom was the only point of contention. Daniel thought since the master bedroom was blue, the bathroom should be a neutral. Betty told Daniel, he thought wrong. The settled on chocolate brown, still in the neutral family, but striking against their stainless fixtures and white tub and cabinets.

Her family had been at their townhouse all weekend helping her and Daniel unpack their stuff. Amanda and Marc showed up, too. They didn't actually move anything, but they did christen the place in their own special way. Betty found new lingerie laid out on their newly made king size bed Sunday night. She had assumed it was from Daniel, but they were both so exhausted from moving and unpacking all weekend. "Do you mind if we don't put these to good use tonight?" she questioned.

"No, I think tonight we could just rest up for tomorrow." he said as he fingered the the items in Betty's hand. "Where did you get this?" the naughty look in his eyes doing interesting things to her stomach as she questioned how important sleep really was.

"You didn't leave them here?" she questioned, genuinely confused as to the origin of black lacy lingerie. They both looked around the room. Their eyes land on the mirror over the dresser and they see the note written in lipstick. 'Hope you enjoy our little gift. Don't do anything we wouldn't.' They turned to each other and Betty dropped the items from her hand as though they carried a disease. "Eww." she said slightly disgusted. Daniel laughed at her response.

"Is there anything they wouldn't do?" he questioned.

Betty looked amused and shook her head as she made her way into bed. " I doubt there is anything that they haven't tried once."

The first time she was alone in their townhouse was on Monday night. She wondered where Daniel was. She knew he had a meeting at the end of the day and she took off early so she could finish unpacking. Last night, he said he would be home by six o'clock so they could 'break in' the new furniture. She was looking at the items in the box she was unpacking and she distractedly responded, "Let's not 'break' anything we just bought."

Trying to capture her attention, he replied with a sexy smirk, "I don't intend to break it, just have sex on every available surface."

She simply rolled her eyes as a light blush covered her cheeks and continued to unpack the box she had in front of her. She certainly enjoyed the endless flirting that had started the day of their first kiss, but she was glad Papi had not been near by for Daniel's comment. "There won't be any available surfaces if you don't finish unpacking that box." she playfully scolded.

"Taskmaster." he grumbled, smirk still in place.

Hilda had unfortunately been close enough to hear that and proceeded to wrangle Betty in the bedroom under the guise of unpacking the boxes that had collected in there. She wanted all the juicy details from the Halloween 'after party'. Betty had only had time to give her the highlights and she had been electronically stalking her sister since then to get the whole story. Unfortunately for Hilda, Igancio chose this moment to appear at the door. "Hey Betty, where does this go?" he asked holding up a box of electronic equipment, and Betty smiled apologetically as she quickly made her escape to show him where to put it. She just wasn't ready to discuss the events of that night with Hilda.

They had finished unpacking all but a few boxes. By the time he was supposed to be home, she had it down to three, two of hers and one of his. So Betty continued to work on them while she waited on Daniel. She had finished unpacking her last two boxes and set them by the door to go out with the trash. She opened Daniel's box and started going through it. She was excited to have everything put away. She was putting some books on the bookshelf in the office and she pulled out the last item in the box, a small light blue box. Betty held her breath as she opened it. She didn't know what to expect. It may not even be for her. To be fair, Daniel had been engaged and married before. Maybe it was simply a keepsake. The ring was beautiful, and nothing she had ever seen before.

She was still staring at the ring a few minutes later when she saw movement out of the corner of her eye. She looked up in time to see Daniel coming through the door to their office. She raised her eyebrow questioningly at him as she held the box so Daniel could see what she was looking at. "Well this isn't really how I planned to do it, but you have always been one step ahead of me." he said with a smile. He came and kneeled in front of Betty. She stared at him, with open mouthed shock as he said, "Betty Suarez, will you marry me?" He gave her a minute to process his proposal before he started freaking out. 'What if it's too soon, what if she's not ready?' he thinks as each second ticks by with his question still hanging in the air. He tries to calm himself down, but Betty has a far away look in her eyes as she considers his proposal, and he can't read her features.

She hadn't expected this. She had assumed they were moving in that direction, but wasn't this kind of fast and a little crazy. She considers all the time they have known each other and all the time they spent together as friends first. She thinks about how she's watched him 'grow up' in the last four years, and seen him become a man she respects and loves. She smiles to herself as she decides that this is a good idea. Three minutes later, or an eternity in Daniel's mind, Betty finally puts his mind at ease. "Yes!" she screams excitedly. "Yes." she says more surely, more softly, as she wraps her arms around his neck as their lips meet for a tender kiss. The kiss quickly becomes more passionate, and they finally have to break to gasp for air. "So I guess it's time to 'break in' the new furniture?" he said with a smirk.

"Well it's about time!" she said with a little yelp as he picked her up and made his way to their desk.

"I think there is some whip cream in our new well stocked fridge." Daniel says hopefully.

"Later" Betty responds smirking before pulling him to her.


	6. Chapter 6

AN: Okay, to anyone who's still reading, thanks and sorry this took so long. I kept trying to go a different direction with this chapter and I kept coming back to the same place. So, I hope you enjoy it and there is only one more chapter after this. I promise it will be more timely, I hope :? Thanks for all the favorites and reviews!

Betty had seen more than one wedding planned from beginning to end. She'd even been involved in planning and carrying out weddings, but she had never experienced the chaos that accompanied the sudden announcement of her engagement to Daniel. She couldn't walk down the sidewalk without being hounded by some reporter for a few weeks. Her family bought dozens of wedding magazines and offered unsolicited advice on their own experiences. Claire made sure she got the last couple of years of Mode's wedding issue and hired the top wedding planner in New York. Marc and Amanda kept up running commentary on what she should NOT do, including the leopard print on the bridesmaid dresses that Hilda suggested and the top hats and canes for the groomsmen Claire suggested.

One day after going over more details with Claire during her work time, she was going to have to talk to Daniel about that again, she was attempting to edit several articles. Amanda walked in and sat on Mark's desk. "She is so lucky to have us." Marc said to Amanda after 'saving' Betty from another disastrous decision.

"Don't I know it, you should see what Daniel was thinking of getting her for her wedding day gift" Amanda said with a smirk as she glanced in Betty's direction to see if she was at all intrigued.

Betty looked up from her computer screen, with a raised eyebrow, but did not comment further. "It really is unbelievable how that man ever got this far with her." she said to Marc. "He really can be completely clueless about this kind of thing. But don't worry Betty, I set him straight."

"Okay, tell me." she said with a sigh. She knew she wouldn't get any work done until she knew what Amanda obviously wanted to tell her.

"I mean lingerie is a gift you give to him, right, preferably you'll be in it."

She smiled and rolled her eyes, "I got Daniel something slightly more meaningful than lingerie." she said in a way that was meant to end the conversation so she could get back to work.

"A video camera, so you can make your first sex tape?" Amanda guessed.

"No and eww! I got him a video camera so we can document our trip. I've never been to France." she said as she blushed at the images Amanda's idea conjured up.

"I know you're marrying him and all, but you do realize Daniel is a little kinky." Amanda said as though speaking to a naïve girl. Her blush deepened as she pondered just how kinky her fiance is. Maybe she would throw in some special lingerie, but she had no intention of telling Amanda.

She did have one friend who she suspected hadn't been completely lost to the insanity of planning her wedding. Although, her hope of sanity came crashing down the week after he proposed, when she got a call from across the ocean, "Hello Love! Tell me it's true!"

"Christina?" Betty asked as she checked her caller id again. "Tell you what's true?"

"I just saw the headline as I walked past a newsstand, You're engaged! I can't believe you let me find out this way." she said sounding utterly appalled.

"I'm so sorry Christina, it's been crazy. We weren't exactly planning on announcing our engagement yet, but Marc caught on and, well, the jerk went ahead and messaged all of Mode. We didn't stand much of chance at keeping it secret after that." Betty replied slightly exasperated.

"I'm sorry Betty, but I know a way you can make it up to me."

Betty could hear the smirk in her voice. "Oh yeah, how?"

"I'm designing your dress, a Christina McKinney Original." she said, and Betty sighed with relief. "If I had made out my checklist yet, I would check that off right now. Only a thousand more details to nail down in the next five months." Christina started doodling dress designs in a notepad as they continued to discuss all that was going on in the other's life.

That's why when she made it back to Ignacio's home in Queens with just over one week remaining before the "blessed" event, she slipped quietly through the back door. She cringed as she overheard the sounds of an argument in the front room and slipped over to Igancio who was preparing dinner at the stove. "Mija!" he whispered excitedly. This was the first time she had been home in a couple of weeks.

Hilda and Claire were currently playing 'nice' today, but it had been a long five months. Daniel had offered to pay for anything she wanted, but Betty had been to busy at work. She had recently been promoted. She could handle the work load, but planning a wedding on top of that proved to be a little overwhelming, she realized when she scheduled an interview at her cake tasting. Hilda was ready to kill her.

At that point Daniel had talked her into delegating some of the responsibilities to his mom and Hilda, which at the time had seemed like a good idea because she trusted their opinions. But both women had very strong personalities, and it had made for a long engagement.

"How's it going?" she whispered as the conversation in the living room got particularly loud.

"Maybe, with you here, they'll actually get something done at a normal decibel." Ignacio said.

"So, that bad, huh?" she questioned dreading her next statement, "Well I guess I better get in there." she said with a sigh. She pulled her shoulders back as if preparing for a battle and headed in to the living room.

"Here, take these. Maybe they'll go easy on you, if you come bearing food." he said as he handed her a plate of chocolate chip cookies.

"Thanks," she sighed again and headed in. "Hey guys." she said slightly unsure as two heads whipped around in her direction, both women instantly appearing calm with a seemingly serene smile as they approached her with handfuls of pictures and lists. All pleasantries forgotten, they quickly ushered her to the couch. On the coffee table set a diagram of the reception hall, complete with tables, chairs and what looked like a doodle of the band, Kiss, who she knew for a fact was neither attending, nor playing at the reception. Bobby must have gotten bored.

They got down to work and finished everything on Hilda and Claire's checklist, including the song list and seating chart amongst other last minute details. Both Hilda and Claire talking her through every little detail and repeatedly clarifying her decisions.

By the time she got home, she was exhausted. Daniel was sitting on the sofa watching the Food Network's Ace of Cakes. Betty plopped down next to him and sighed contentedly as she leaned on his shoulder. As soon as she realized it was a wedding cake special, she grabbed the remote and changed the channel with a huff.

Daniel cautiously smirked, "That bad, huh?" he questioned.

"I might need a reminder why this wedding is a good idea." she replied.

"We only have a little more than a week." he said hopefully as he laid a gentle kiss on her forehead. His attempt to raise her spirits seemed to dampen her mood further.

"I don't think I can take it. I love your mother and my sister, but they are driving me nuts!" she said exasperated.

"I have an idea. What if we went to the Justice of the Peace tomorrow and got legally married, just you and me. No seating charts or music or people making this moment between us into a frenzied activity for some photographer to turn into a picture perfect book for our kids to look at." Daniel rambled on as he watched Betty's face brighten up.

"I love you." she whispered as she leaned in to kiss him.

He leaned away, "So?"

"When have I ever said no to you?" she questioned back.

"I love you", he finally whispered back and leaned in to kiss her.

The next morning they woke up early and dressed up a little. They canceled their morning appointments and headed to the Justice of the Peace for a little 'til death do us part'. They quietly celebrated during lunch with champagne and lots of kissing.

When they got back to the Mode Claire barged into Daniel's office and turned on the television. "You need to see this."

She stepped back as Fashion TV started playing and Suzuki's extremely excited expression appeared on the screen. "You are not going to believe the scoop I have for you today, fashionistas. Former playboy and editor in chief of Mode magazine, Daniel Meade and his formerly ensemble-y challenged assistant turned svelte editor, Betty Suarez, were seen leaving the courthouse this morning hand in hand, both smiling. Rumor has it, his reformed ugly Betty has a new last name." The report continues in the background as Betty's phone rings. She looks down to see that it's Hilda and ignores it as she turns to Daniel with a worried expression destroying the serene look she has had since they woke up this morning.

She can tell it doesn't matter to him, he didn't really want to keep it a secret anyway. She smiled and looked to see Claire's response next. She was smiling and reached out to give Betty a hug. "You couldn't wait another week!" Claire says sounding only slightly frustrated.

In the background she heard Suzuki say almost sincerely, "Well it's about time. Detty has finally realized what we knew along. We, here at Fashion TV, wish you all the best." his smirk and pithy remarks were softer than usual.


End file.
